


The War is Tied, The Battle is Won

by Sar61_Sanz6



Category: The Companions Quartet - Julia Golding
Genre: Alternate Reality, Alternate Timeline, Alternate Universe, Enemies to Friends, Enemy turned ally, Mythical Beings & Creatures, Other, eco-friendly home, make the world a better place, new timeline, treehouse
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-30
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:20:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,881
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24449485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sar61_Sanz6/pseuds/Sar61_Sanz6
Summary: This story starts at the first book of Companions Quartet, it is my own version of what could have happened if Connie accepted to help Kullervo. I own nothing! Companions Quartet belongs to Julia Golding, not me!What if Connie decided to help Kullervo? Connie became Kullervo’s companion and together, they worked to save all mythical creatures from human kind’s war on the Earth. What have they done to make the world a better place for mythical creatures?
Relationships: Connie Lionheart & Kullervo
Kudos: 4





	1. The Offer

**Author's Note:**

> Julia Goldling owns The Companions Quartet I own nothing!

“She understands, my friends, as I said she would!” Kullervo cried triumphantly. 

Connie thought things over, while the Society may not have been right, Kullervo’s ways were not either. She was conflicted; yes, she wanted to help these creatures, but was the complete annihilation of humanity truly the only way? No, there had to be another way, there was always another way. But how to convince him… 

“I do see what you mean,” she started, trembling slightly. She was walking on a thin line, she needed to be careful. 

“Humans can be awful, they go about their lives harming the world without even considering the damage they do.” Many of the creatures surrounding her, including Kullervo, growled in agreement with her, “but, that can not only mean that there is no hope of restoring a cycle.”

Kullervo tilted his bird head, as did many other mythical creatures around them, making noises of confusion. 

“By what do you mean when you say a ‘cycle’?” Kullervo asked, his eyes staring down at Connie, as though he could see right through her. 

Connie gulped, regaining her courage, “I mean, a system, a way of life, a circle that everyone can follow. Where the lives of humans don’t have to harm the world. A cycle, like the circle of life, where everything has a place and can be put back into the cycle after its use.”

It was a long shot, a chance that may never really come to light, but she had few options to go on. With the way the world was it could be impossible to make such a change, however, it could also be perfect to fix everything. 

Kullervo chuckled, “You think such a thing can fix everything? It would take a large sum of the human population to make such a ‘cycle’ come to life. And even then, it would take even more humans to uphold such a thing for the future.” 

Connie still persisted, “Maybe, but I think it can happen. We just have to try.” 

Connie had to try, as Scark said, she had not even tried, but she had to now. 

“Please, just think of it, a world where humans don’t pollute,” Connie said as she stretched a hand towards Kullervo, “a world where mythicals can live happily,” Kullervo lowered his head towards Connie’s hand, hesitant, but intrigued by her words, “a world where we could live together.”

Connie’s hand touched Kullervo, a bond formed within their minds. Connie reached for Kullervo’s ocean, connecting it with her own. She formed shapes, a vision, showing the shape-shifter what could be. Together, they saw a bright world, filled with green and wild colors, within it was humans mixed with mythical creatures, living together under a blue and clouded sky. A rock dwarf tended to a garden with a tall woman, a dragon and pegasus raced in the sky with their companions on their backs, unicorns joined with humans in a field of flowers, water sprites played in a pond with children giggling. The bonds of companionship could be felt in the vision, strong and peaceful enough to seem like paradise. Connie could feel Kullervo adjusting to the sight, his mind and hers collided, making new forms appear in their shared vision. Wood sprites could be seen among the trees, a gorgon’s silhouette slithered in the dark shadows, frost wolves chased each other with their companions cheering them on, fire imps danced in the flames of a grill being used for a large party, mermaids swam up a large river to greet humans jumping into the water; it was perfect. 

Connie could feel how happy the vison was, she could feel the companionship between humans and mythicals, even though it was just a dream. But she wanted this to be real and she could sense Kullervo’s feelings shift as he saw this. 

Connie could sense the other mythical creatures around them grow restless. ‘They need to see this too’ Connie thought. 

Connie spread her reach to them, finding the wavering bonds that had been cast away earlier. She connected them to the vision, showing them her shared dream with Kullervo. Even when it felt like her mind was being stretched in all directions, she held firm. She never had bonded with so many creatures at once, being cautious not to overwhelm herself before. Now, she needed to push her limits, regardless, they need to see this as much as Kullervo did. 

Through the bonds, Connie felt every creature gaze at the scene with longing, want, desire, and other mixed feelings that began to overpower her own. The dream began to grow and more people and creatures appeared. Great bears cuddled sleeping humans, great boars basked in the sunlight on beds of tall grass, griffons cried in the air with humans riding on them, weather giants stood proud in the sky, trolls wandered with human companions, storm-birds flew higher into the endless blue; this was a utopia. 

But just as everything was going so well, Connie began to feel herself reach her limit. Exhaustion caught up to her, making her mind darken, her hold on the bonds loosened and released. Connie lost her balance and began to fall over, she braced herself for the fall. However, she found herself landing on a cold but soft surface rather than the prickling nest of sticks. Using the last of her strength, Connie lifted her head to see what she fell on. To her surprise, Kullervo had taken the form of a three-headed dog, a Cerberus if she remembered correctly. 

All three of the heads stared at Connie as she fell further into unconsciousness, their yellow and gold eyes had the faintest hint of care that Connie barely caught. 

“You have intrigued me, Universal. I will speak with you more about this vision of a world you have shown me and my followers. Later, when you have rested well.” he said with a low growl in his voice, but not in an intimidating way. Kullervo seemed calmer and friendly, and overall not as dangerous. She briefly wondered if this was the same shape-shifter she had met earlier. 

It seemed like Connie was not going to die and with all the loss of energy she could not resist falling asleep. 

As the universal companion gave in to her exhaustion, she just barely heard the cries of a seagull draw close. Soon after, she welcomed the calm of darkness as she slept. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is this a better outcome for Connie? Share what you think in the comments!


	2. A New Place

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For the few readers enjoying this tale, I thank you for reading!

As Connie woke up, the first thing she noticed was that the bed was not normal. It felt harder as if the mattress was only a few centimeters thick. The pillow was thinner too and only a sheet covered her rather than the warm blankets she was accustomed to. 

Then she remembered last night, the kidnapping, meeting Kullervo, hearing his plans, and then… 

“That’s right, he listened to me.” Connie remembered the shared bond and vision. It seemed so perfect like they completed each other when they bonded like that. 

Pushing those thoughts to the side, Connie sat up on the bed she slept on. It was made of wood but it had a natural feel to it, the sheet she was covered with was thin but once she removed it she understood why it was her only cover. The room Connie found herself in was really warm, if she had been covered with a normal blanket she probably would have been sweating all night. She looked around the room, finding the floors, walls, and even the ceiling made entirely of wood. The head of the bed was under a window which was covered by two small, thin, white curtains. Across the bed was a cast iron hearth with a long pipe going up and through the ceiling. 

To the right of the bed was a wooden nightstand with only a single drawer and a small shelf that started just two inches above the floor. To the right of the hearth was a wide dresser with a large rectangular mirror. To the left of the hearth was a coat rack with a black cape hanging from it already. To the far right of Connie was a pair of double doors with brass handles on the same wall as the window, they had longer versions of the window curtains hanging on them as well. To the far left of the room was a wide wooden door, also with a brass handle. Engraved in the top center of the door was a compass symbol that Connie had grown to know as the symbol of the Universals. 

Once Connie saw the window, she immediately pushed aside the curtains to see a forest of tall trees, the smell of pine in the room was enough to tell her where she was. Kullervo must have brought her to this place after she fell asleep. There were no streets, paths, houses, or even people as far as her eyes could see, it was all covered with tall trees that seemed to reach the sky. Connie could see the peak of a mountain between some of the trees, but it seemed so far away. 

Noticing that the window did not open and getting curious, Connie got out of the bed and walked to the double doors on the far right. When she opened the doors together, she found a small patio that went no farther than two feet and was four feet across. The patio had a fence that seemed to be made of branches, crossing each other in a natural way that made it look like a tree was trying to keep her safe. The fence posts were the only perfectly vertical parts of the design, even then, it still looked naturally beautiful to her. Connie walked to the fence and gazed over her surroundings, she was indeed in a forest, an old one judging by the height of the trees. Looking down, she saw she was in fact in a treehouse of some kind, though it was bigger than any treehouse she had ever seen. Off to the left side of the treehouse, Connie could catch a glimpse of another patio on the floor beneath her. Wanting to explore, she turned back around, only to find something else that caught her attention. 

Above her was another floor, one with large windows that seemed close to being floor to ceiling windows. Thin cotton curtains were covering the windows, so it was hard to see what was up there. With her curiosity gnawing at her, Connie walked back inside, noticing that the patio doors actually had windows down the center. As she walked to the wooden door on the other side of the room, Connie paused for a moment as she took in every detail of the room. Now that she stopped to think, she could see that the room was actually in a circular U shape. The wooden door was at the end of one side while next to her at the other end was another door that had been hard to see because of the lack of light. Taking a quick peek, Connie opened the door and saw a compost toilet and a small sink that looked like a wooden bowl sitting on a cabinet. 

There was a wooden chest at the foot of the bed, slightly shorter than the footboard. Another window was a few feet away from the one over the bed, under it was a rectangular, straw laundry hamper. On the dresser were two wooden bookends; one with a sun made of different colored wood, the other with a crescent moon. The wall that the hearth and dresser were pressed up against was actually the thick bark of the tree that the house sat upon. On the nightstand was an indoor candle lantern, made of dark metal and the hearth was almost out of wood as the last embers began to dim, it even looked like little people were dancing in there. 

“Wait, there is someone in there!” Connie rushed to keel down in front of the warm hearth. There, in the embers, were little figures dancing in the remains of the wood, looking like they were having the time of their lives. 

Connie then began to recognize them from yesterday in the shared dream; they were fire imps. Wanting to be polite and say hello, Connie reached for them and they immediately caught her link. Connie’s mind was soon filled with fiery warmth and the sound of hissing logs, burning twigs, and roaring flames.

_ Hello, _ Connie said, feeling a bit of a strain with her bond with multiple fire imps, but it was not as strong or tiring as yesterday’s endeavor,  _ are you the ones that kept the room warm all night? _

_ Yes, yes! That was us! Kullervo let us dance in your room’s hearth all night.  _ One imp said with joy as he and his brothers and sisters danced with happiness. 

_ Well then, thank you.  _ Connie said with a warm smile, much to the pleasure of the fire imps. 

She released the bond and left the imps to have their fun, taking a chance to think things over. ‘My room’, Connie thought, ‘this is all for me?’ 

Looking around, Connie did feel like she belonged here. For some reason, it did feel like hers, but she knew she had never been here before in her life. 

Still not sure how to feel, Connie headed for the door. As she grabbed the handle she noticed that it and the handles on the patio doors had vine-like designs. She went through the door and entered what looked like a small art gallery. This room and her bedroom seemed to be two halves of a circle, but this room was used as an art hall more than anything. Small shelves held clay dishes with mythical creatures painted or carved on them, wood planks were engraved with drawings of wood sprites and pixies and it hung on the bark by rope, paintings of all mythical creatures were framed in wood and clear glass, many of these pieces showed creatures that Connie had yet too see or even hear of. Only two windows gave the room light, both had the same curtains like the ones in her room, and hanging from the ceiling by chains were colorful glass bottles with candles inside them. At the other end of the U shaped room was a metal ladder that reached an opening in the ceiling, clearly the way up to the top floor. Behind the ladder was a wooden railing for stairs with the same design as the patio fence but it spiraled downward. 

‘Which one first?’ Connie wondered, ‘The top floor or the bottom floor?’ 

Deciding to start from the top, Connie headed for the ladder, it seemed to be made of cast iron like the hearth in her room. The metal was rough but strong and sturdy with her weight, feeling confident that she would not fall down, Connie climbed the ladder to the top floor. 

Once she reached the top, she was amazed to find shelves mostly full of books. Two cotton chairs with wooden legs sat to the side of the ladder, between them was a rectangular coffee table that looked like a plank of wood had been bent to make it stand on its own. The shelves were all made of wood and circled around the bark of the tree with only the space for the ladder entrance showing the bark. The hole for the ladder was protected by the same fencing design as the patio, guarding the side behind Connie and the side to her left as she came in. The room had no walls cutting this space into different sections like the middle floor, so Connie could walk in a full circle on this level. More shelves were placed between the large windows that lit the room, a pattern surrounded the outer wall perfectly; shelf, window, shelf, window, shelf, etc. 

Gazing over the books, Connie could see they were all very old as if no one had touched them for years. The paper varied in different shades of yellow and the covers ranged from leather to thin wood. Pulling out one book, with a brown leather cover, Connie paged through it finding the words written in out-of-date English. She came across words like ‘mizzen’, ‘thither’, and ‘forsooth’, all of which she never heard of or knew the definitions to. But she did see the name of a mythical creature pop up in the book repeatedly; the Leviathan. It was clearly a book about the mythical creature, but when she read the pages she found the book focused on describing its behavior and the feeling of the companion’s bond with it. 

“This must have been written by a member of the Society. But why is it here?” Connie wondered. 

She put the book back in its place and walked toward a window, hoping it was the one over her patio. Pushing aside the curtain, she looked down to see the patio connected to her room then looked up to see the view. Now that she was higher, the peak of the mountain seemed to reach over the treetops. The forest looked bigger too, almost endless from her point of view. 

Despite wanting to enjoy the view, Connie moved back to the ladder and climbed down. Reaching the second floor, she went around the ladder and walked down the spiral staircase, using the rail to steady herself on the way down. The stairs’ steps were all made of wood and seemed to be very steady despite their thin appearance. 

Reaching the bottom, Connie saw a wide, arched, wooden door with a stain glass window that had compass hands colored in each of the companies’ signature color; north was gold for the Elementals, east was blue for the High Flyers, the south was orange for the Sea Snakes, and west was green for the Two-Fours. 

Deciding to save the door for last, Connie ventured to the left, finding a small wooden table with two cotton chairs. A glass candle holder sat in the center of the table, glistening in the sunlight peeking between the curtains of a large window that the table stood under. Just on the opposite wall of the table and a few feet to the right, was a wooden antique dish pantry with glass windows in the top doors. The sides and bottom cabinet doors had wildflowers engraved on the wood, giving it a natural look and feel. Through the glass on the top, Connie could see clear glass plates, bowls, cups, and even jars. Looking to the right, she saw shelves sticking out of the tree’s bark holding glass teacups and a small clear glass teapot. Beneath the shelves was a short wooden cabinet with four drawers on the right half of it and one large door on the left. On top of the short cabinet was a curved wooden bread box with small wheat strands engraved on it. A few feet to the right was a wooden food pantry with a flower vine engravement on the double doors and sides. Just a couple more feet to the right was a tall antique icebox with a wooden cover. On its right half was a single door and on its left half was a small door placed under a bigger door above it. 

Across the icebox was a cast-iron stove with an oven and its pipe turned at an angle through the wall. To the left was a double door window with a single long cotton curtain that could be tied to the left, away from the stove, if needed. Under the window was a long wooden table that could be used for cooking prep. Next to the window was a wooden knife holder hanging from the wall and wooden cutting boards hung from small hooks along with various kitchen utensils and potholders. 

Next to the wall of cooking tools was a barn sink with small wooden counters on either side of it. On its left counter was a steel water filter almost two feet tall. A wooden dish rack stood on the left counter. Just over the sink was another pair of window doors with the same cotton curtains as all the other windows. 

Just beyond the kitchen area were three wooden bookcases along the bark, with a wooden table and chair under a large window just across them. Pulling out one of the books, Connie realized that these were instructions on how to use the cast iron stove and oven. Checking other books, she saw that they held various recipes and techniques for cooking. 

Putting the cookbooks back, she walked beyond the small study area and reached the same place she started with; the staircase and the door. 

Heading right for the door without a second thought, Connie turned the vine designed brass handle and walked out of the treehouse. She stopped right as she stepped over the threshold. 

The door led outside to a much larger patio than the one in her room, Connie suspected this was the patio she saw earlier. It was narrow towards the door and grew in width farther outward. A wooden sundial stood out toward the wider part of the patio, its point faced just a bit father to Connie’s left. The patio was fenced with the same design as the staircase rail and the smaller patio in Connie’s room. The birds could be heard chirping in the pine trees, woodpeckers pecking echoed through the trees, raccoons and squirrels scurried across the branches, but none of that could catch Connie’s attention than what stood at the end of the patio. 

There, at the very end of the patio and in the form of a black pegasus, was Kullervo. 

“I see you have finished your little exploration of your new home. I hope everything is to your liking, my companion.” 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave kudos and comment, I love feedback!


	3. The New Plan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3, enter the return of Kullervo. Leave comments down below, please!

Kullervo stood at the end of the patio in the form of a black pegasus, he seemed to have been waiting for Connie to come out all this time. But what he said to her was a bit startling for Connie.

“My new home?” Connie asked, a bit worried. 

Kullervo raised his head, standing as a person in command, “Yes, my companion. From now on, this will be your new home. You will find everything you need, I and my followers will handle delivering you food and other necessities. As I am sure you have noticed, the fire imps have agreed to assist you with lighting and heat, they shall come whenever you call for them.”

Connie just barely heard Kullervo, she was too shocked by what he said. “But, I have a home at Hescombe.” 

The shape-shifter shook his head in disgust, “Those fools from the Society attempted to take you back not long after you fell asleep. If you were to return, they would keep you as far away from me as possible. No, this place is much better for you, after all, how can you assist my followers and I if you are locked up under the Trustees watch?”

Connie knew he had a point there, but still, “What about my family? They must be worried by now.”

Kullervo turned his head to the side, clearly becoming annoyed, “They have little use to you now, and the Society will likely come up with a decent excuse for your absence. If you are done asking pointless questions, there are more important things we need to discuss.”

Connie slowly nodded, while she did not really like this she had no choice; if she made Kullervo mad he might pull the same stunt as yesterday when he was ‘persuading’ her to join him.

Kullervo lowered his head and locked his eyes with Connie’s, “Now, as I said before, you have intrigued me. The dream you shared with me and my followers, was tempting, even with the humans in it. So I have decided to see just how far you can go with this idea of a ‘cycle’, as you called it.”

Connie’s heart fluttered, there may be a chance to save everyone. 

“However,” Kullervo raised his head again, a steel look overtook his eyes, “if you decide at any time to give up or find the dream impossible to achieve, you will have to decide if you will join me in my plans or not.”

Slightly terrified, Connie gulped. There was a lot at stake if she could not get her vision into a reality. But if she could manage it, then everyone would be safe and happy, the war could be over forever. 

“What about the sirens? Gull-Wing and her sisters? Are you still going to have them attack the ships?” Worry clawed at her, she needed to stop the sirens from making a big mistake. 

Kullervo stared at her with a look of disapproval and disgust, but he did not say anything as he seemed to be thinking of a response. 

“The attack,” he began slowly, “will still happen. But I will be taking you along with me, perhaps you can show us what other options can be done to stop the humans from claiming what is not theirs.”

Now Connie was panicking, “But that’s not enough time! And if I can only change things right when everything happens, how-”

“Enough!” Kullervo shouted with a rumbling undertone, “You will wait for the day of the attack. Until then, you have plenty of time to think up plans for it as well as plans for your dream.”

Connie was stumped, she felt trapped and unable to do anything. But with so much at stake, she had to try, even if it looked impossible. 

“Alright, I’ll wait.” She said reluctantly. 

Kullervo nodded, “Now, one last thing.” he turned his head toward the forest and neighed loudly. At first, Connie was confused, until she saw a white bird fly toward the deck, a familiar white bird. 

“Scark!” She shouted with glee as the seagull flew right into her arms, crying and flapping his wings excitedly. 

Kullervo nodded, “This one managed to find you just as you fell asleep. He was faster tracking you down than the Society was and refused to leave your side after. He may stay with you under the condition that he does not tell anyone where you are.”

That was fine for Connie, at least now she had a familiar friend to keep her company. 

“Now, I will give you time to settle in. I will be coming to check on you regularly, but if you try to leave, there will be consequences.” Kullervo warned and with a jump off the patio, he flew off. 

Connie watched Kullervo disappear into the sky, stroking Scark’s feathered head for comfort. She could imagine what kind of ‘consequences’ Kullervo had in mind if she attempted to leave. But looking around, she noticed that the patio had no exit for a ladder or even stairs. It seemed the only way in and out of the treehouse was by flight. 

She walked to the left side and looked over the fence, seeing that the house had to be at least a hundred feet off the ground. “Yeah, I don’t think I’ll risk jumping off.” 

Scark flew out of Connie’s grip and landed on the sundial. The bird puffed his chest and fluttered his wings in exasperation. 

Connie rolled her eyes, “I know I can’t fly. Do these even look like wings to you?” she asked as she spread her arms.

Scark did a series of gestures that indicated, no they did not look like wings but he knew that she liked to imagine she could fly. 

Connie smirked, knowing the seabird was right, but frowned a moment later, “Hey, Scark? Is it okay for you to be so far inland? What about Mew?”

Scark flapped his wings and hopped around the sundial to say that he would be fine without the ocean and that his daughter was a fully grown bird: Mew would be fine. 

“Well, if you’re sure. But where are you going to nest?” 

Scark took to the sky and circled the treehouse, after a few minutes he landed in a knothole just above the third floor. 

“All right, guess that means we are neighbors now.” Connie said with a smile. She was glad that Scark would stay close, with him around she would not feel alone here. 

Scark gave a loud squawk then flew off into the woods, going to search for items to build his new nest with. 

Connie watched her friend vanish in the maze of trees before turning to face her new home. Now she saw that there were candle lanterns on either side of the large door and when she checked the end of the patio, there was more along the sides of the fence. Taking in the strange shape of the patio, Connie saw that it was supported by two long branches that stretched outward. It was clear the patio was made to be completely supported by those two branches alone. 

Going back inside, she decided to do a more thorough search of the place. Starting with the kitchen, she found cast iron pots and pans in the bottom cabinets of the dish pantry. In the drawers of the short cabinet, she found steel cutlery, glass straws, folded cotton sacks, and metal jar lids, most of them sorted in wooden organizers. Behind the short cabinet's door were a cast-iron kettle, bread pans, and cooking sheets. Opening the bread box, Connie found it empty and wondered if there was a book on the shelves about making bread. Checking the food pantry, she found it mostly empty with only a clay bowl of fruit. Feeling hungry, she took an apple and moved on. The icebox was clearly old, possibly from the 1800s, but it was in perfect condition. Opening the right door, she found only a glass milk bottle filled and a glass jug of water. Closing the door she opened the larger door on the left, finding a metal bucket of water completely frozen solid. The section under the ice bucket was empty but colder than the larger section on the right. 

Across the kitchen was the cast iron stove and just to the right of it, Connie could see a small pile of logs stacked perfectly. The window over the prep table had handles and once she checked, Connie found she could open the double window doors outward just fine. The smell of the pine forest filled the kitchen as she looked over the different cooking utensils, all made of steel or wood, even the knife handles were made of wood. The potholders ranged from white to cream in color and were either made of cotton or wool. Under the kitchen sink and countertops were some wool and cotton rags and drying cloths, cheesecloths, sea and loofah sponges, some wooden sink brushes, and steel funnels. 

Walking farther, Connie looked over the different kinds of books on the three bookcases, finding ways to make all kinds of food from the old yellow pages. On the bottom shelves, she found small wooden chests; two had locks and three were easy to access. Pulling out one of the three that were not locked, Connie moved it to the table and opened it. Inside were blank pale-yellow papers and scrolls that had never been used. Getting excited, she brought the other two chests and found one filled with unused letters, five wax stamps, wax spoons, and small cubes of colored wax. When Connie inspected the stamps, she found one had the compass symbol of the Universals and the four others had the symbols of the other four companies. 

Seeing the contents of the chests Connie got an idea but brushed it aside for later. After putting everything back, she headed up the stairs to her bedroom. 

Connie walked right to the large chest at the foot of her bed and opened its heavy lid. Inside were cotton and wool comforters, blankets, and sheets, all folded neatly and ready to be used at a moment's notice. She moved to the dresser next to the hearth and worked through all eight drawers. She found one drawer filled with cotton and wool nightgowns, another with cotton shirts, one with cotton skirts, another with under items made of cotton and wool, one filled with different sized cotton bags, two had leather satchels in them, and the last had a wooden box with the full Universal compass engraved on the lid with each of the four companies’ symbols on their respective place around the compass. 

Curious, Connie took the box to the bed and opened it with care. Inside was a large pocket compass with the Univeral’s symbol on the lid, it looked like it was made of silver and felt like a valuable antique. Next to the compass was a silver medallion with the same design imprinted on it, attached to a simple leather cord. But what was most astonishing, was what was written on the inside of the box’s lid:

_ Universals are an inspiration, They are the examples and leaders of all companions _

_ When you, a Universal, truly understand this, your path will be made clear _

_ Know that what you do will be seen and heard by those that watch and follow you _

_ Bare the mark of those before you and make those long deceased proud _

Connie was close to tears, this message was from a Universal, like her. Now she could see the weight and importance a Universal carries, as well as what her predecessors likely felt before her. Universals were not just people that could bond with all mythical creatures, they were the compass that many others followed, they guided others to show them the correct path. 

But Connie was still a kid, only eleven years old, how could she be what everyone needed her to be? She may have delayed Kullervo’s war against humanity, but for how long? 

When everything started, it seemed like a good idea, being a Universal. Now it seemed like she was overlooking something important. Thinking things over, compared to how she lived before, this place was like a perfect replica of what she meant when she said a ‘cycle’. 

Everything in the treehouse was made of wood, metal, clay, wool, or cotton, all of which were non-toxic to the environment. Not a single thing that made this house was made of plastic and even the lamps were lit by candles rather than oil. In Connie’s childhood, she could remember throwing things away carelessly, playing with plastic toys, and going to gas stations. She wanted to make the world a better place, but she had just now started to realize just how late she was to start. 

‘I am such a hypocrite’, Connie thought, ‘I want things to change, but I haven’t even changed myself, much less tired.’

_ Try _ , that was what she needed to start on: she needed to start trying. If Connie was going to change the world, she would need to be the model, the example. 

From now on, Connie was going to try harder than ever before. 

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't forget to comment and leave kudos! 
> 
> Oh! And I now have a [Tumblr](https://sar61sanz6.tumblr.com/) account and Ko-fi page connected to it. So please show your support and follow me!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Share what you think in the comments!


End file.
